


(not so) silent night

by UnderdogHero



Category: Inazuma Eleven: Ares no Tenbin
Genre: Gift Fic, Secret Santa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-27
Updated: 2020-12-27
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:48:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,247
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28354194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UnderdogHero/pseuds/UnderdogHero
Summary: In which there's a blackout at the Teikoku dorms, Kazemaru is told "buddy system", and Fudou gets stuck doing check-in with him. Somewhere along the way, they get stuck with Shimerigawa.xXxXxWritten for the Ina11 Secret Santa 2020 event, for julkurtz-ie on Tumblr.
Relationships: Fudou Akio & Kazemaru Ichirouta, implied background Genda/Sakuma
Kudos: 12





	(not so) silent night

**Author's Note:**

> "Oh fuck it's already Christmas" was basically my reaction I few days ago when I realized I hadn't finished this fic yet. I felt especially bad since I'd already received my half of the Secret Santa exchange, but at usual my horrible work ethic(and IRL work increasing due to the holidays) delayed this greatly.
> 
> This fic is for julkurtz-ie on Tumblr, who was apparently also my secret Santa and drew me a super cute Nosaka/Kirina shopping date! I'm really glad they were able to work with my admittedly not very Christmas-y prompts.
> 
> ... Which is why I feel a little bad saying, this is probably the last thing they expected. The prompts they gave me were "midnight, candlelight, cozy" and pairings were Genda/Sakuma and Aphrodi/Fudou, but among their favorites, Fudou was the only one I was confident in writing. I still consider myself pretty new to this fandom, so I've mostly only been focusing on characters I like while I attempt to finish at least one game.
> 
> So I banged my head on the wall a few times and came up with something that still used the prompts, albeit in a very gen way. I hope it's acceptable either way!

The whole point in coming to Teikoku, honestly, had been to make things easier for his mother.

If he had to admit it, he didn’t remember much of his childhood before his father walked out on them. He never asked either, seeing no point in dwelling on the past or the kind of life he could have had. As far as he was concerned, what’s done is done, and he was all burnt out on bitterness and resentment.

But that didn’t change the fact that things had been hard. Bills piled up, they moved several times, each house becoming smaller and smaller. He vividly remembered that short time where his mother had been working three jobs at once just to keep a roof over his head, his stomach full, and the collectors off their doorstep.

The amount of fights he got into at school definitely didn’t help, but she never berated him. Somehow, that always made him feel worse.

So when the opportunity to transfer to a school that provided housing, meals, and the uniform, with a full scholarship for his third year of middle school and all of high school popped up, he jumped on it faster than the school representative could finish making the offer. If it meant his mother didn’t have to worry about providing him food and clothing for the next four years, he’d take it.   
  
And if he was lucky he’d get scouted for a professional team. Having Teikoku Middle School’s name to back him up had to be good for something, right?

But of all the things he expected, having to check in on all the students in the dorm building at midnight during a power outage wasn’t it.

“The faster we get this over with, the faster we can get back to sleep.”

Kazemaru’s voice was calm, despite the fact that he was visibly shaking from the cold. The heating was gone with the power, and the hideous Chistmas sweater he wore - sent to him by his family - did little to protect him from the chill.

Fudou clicked his tongue, taking the lantern with a candle settled in the middle when it was offered. Why were they even using something as oldschool as this? Didn’t they have flashlights?

“The RA said all the flashlights are dead, apparently someone was using them the other night.”

“Do I even want to know?”

“It was something about a test of courage.”

“Yeah, I don’t want to know.”

He wasn’t surprised they hadn’t heard about it, considering he and Kazemaru were usually left out of the loop concerning most team activities. Even after making up with the team, if it didn’t have to do with a match, the others didn’t seem to think Kazemaru needed to know, and he didn’t seem to care if they invited him or not. In Fudou’s case, they left him out on purpose.

“So why are  _ we _ the ones doing check-in?” He asked as they began their walk through the dark hallways. There was a little moonlight streaming in, but being the middle of winter it was cloudy, so despite his disdain he was happy for the candlelight. “Isn’t that the teacher’s job?”

Kazemaru shrugged, shuffling the small amount of extra candles and the clipboard he held in his arms.

“They didn’t say why. They just told me to check in on everyone and handed me these. My phone is charging anyway.”

_ So they were lazy _ . Considering administration tended to take the back seat when it came to dealing with students, he shouldn’t have wondered at all.

Well, his phone was dead too anyway. Maybe he shouldn’t have been playing all those games.

“And why am I here?”

“They said to bring a buddy.”

Fudou opened his mouth, a snarky retort already on the tip of his tongue, but he bit it back.

_ Birds of a feather, I guess _ .

“... Alright then, who’s first.”

**.**

“We didn’t see  _ anything _ .”   
  
Kazemaru nodded, quickly checking off the names  _ Genda _ and  _ Sakuma _ from his list. Fudou pinched the bridge of his nose.

They didn’t expect it when they opened the door, finding not just Genda in the room, but Sakuma as well. While Kazemaru knew Genda’s roommate was back home, he didn’t think the two would be so bold as to-

“We should have known something was up, Sakuma never leaves his room in the middle of the night.” Fudou grumbled. “I would know, I’m literally his neighbor.”

“I thought we didn’t see anything.”

“Well sorry if I’m a _ little _ in shock?”

The corners of Kazemaru’s lips quirked up slightly, and he let out a soft chuckle.

Fudou huffed.

“By the way,” Kazemaru started as they continued their walk. “Why didn’t you go home for break? Almost everyone else has.”

It was true - they’d only had to check on maybe three or four rooms since most of the team was back home for the holidays, and wouldn’t be back until next week. The few that stayed either only went back for a little while or chose to stay for one reason or another.

Fudou wasn’t sure why the question surprised him though. Maybe it’s because Kazemaru didn’t normally ask questions.

His pause might have been too long, because Kazemaru hummed and answered his own question, “My parents asked me to come home, but there was a lot of work to do here, so I decided to stay. Might as well get it over with so I can settle things before I have to leave, and I can always visit for Christmas day.”

It was a reasonable answer. Kazemaru was almost always reasonable, especially now that Kageyama was gone and the team could make their own decisions.

If anything that made it harder to answer.

Kazemaru didn’t push it.

“Well, we’ve gotten almost everyone. The only rooms left are ours and…”

Fudou noted the way he trailed off, and how his face warped slightly. It only took him a second to figure out why.

“Oh come on. Do we actually have to check on that kid?”

“He  _ is _ part of the team.”

“Pfft, barely…”

The look Kazemaru gave him told him to back off, so he threw the hand not holding the lantern into the air with a huff.

“Fine. But if that little shit says more than two words to me, I’m gone.”

“That’s fine. Besides, we’re here anyway.”

Fudou jerked, turning abruptly in the direction of the door. As if on cue, the clouds parted and allowed the moonlight to shine on the single nameplate, highlighting the name  _ Shimerigawa _ .

_ Ugh _ .

He gave Kazemaru one last, pained look, before allowing the other boy to step past him and knock on the door.

“Shimerigawa?” He called. A second past, no response. “Shimerigawa, it’s Kazemaru and Fudou. We’re checking in on everyone.”

Still no response.

“If you’re there, can you open up?”

After another few seconds of waiting, Fudou was ready to tell Kazemaru to give up on him after all and drag him away, before a shuffling sound caught his attention. Immediately after there was a thump and a yelp, and rapid footsteps heading in their directions.

The door flew open to reveal a frazzled looking Shimerigawa, who looked a mix of terrified and angry.

“Finally!” He yelled, though halfway through the word he quieted down when they both hushed him. “What took you fools so long?! I’ve been waiting for hours for someone to come by!”

“The power’s only been out like forty-five minutes.” Fudou said flatly, though this did little to curb the younger boy’s apparent anger.

“We were going by room, so yours ended up last since it’s at the end of the hall.” Kazemaru added, checking off Shimerigawa’s name on the list.

“Irrelevant! I should have been the first person you checked on! Don’t you know how important I am to this team?!”

Fudou opened his mouth to respond, but Kazemaru elbowed him softly, giving him a stern glare. He settled with rolling his eyes instead.

“Regardless, if you’re okay then we’ll leave you be. Good night.” Kazemaru said, clicking his pen and turning away, Fudou turning with him.

“W-Wait!” Shimerigawa called after them, grabbing both their elbows. A low growl from Fudou had him releasing them. "Y-You're just going to leave me here? Alone? In the dark?!"

"Yeah, kinda." Fudou said. Shimerigawa visibly shook.

"But what if something happens! There's no light, what if I trip and hit my head? I could get a concussion, go into a coma, I could die!" He shrieked.

"Wouldn't that be a shame…" Fudou said, ignoring the pointed look he got from Kazemaru. "Why are you even here anyway? Shouldn't an important rich kid like you be back home for the holidays?"

At that, Shimerigawa huffed, crossing his arms indignantly.

"Papa said he had work to do this week, so I have to stay here until he's done! I'll be home in time for Christmas." He said, chin tilted up and everything, like he was trying to look down on Fudou despite the significant height difference. "What about  _ you _ low-borns?"

"I'm finishing some work for the team, but I plan to go back on Christmas." Kazemaru answered easily. They both looked to Fudou.

"... Christmas is a pain." He said, meeting Kazemaru's eyes for just a second. "Anyway, if you're such a big shot, you should be fine in the dark for a while, right?"

This seemed to bring back the first year's earlier fear, and looked at Kazemaru, who was starting to look a little more than done with this conversation.

"You're not  _ actually _ going to leave me here, are you? Your roommate is back home, can't I stay with you?"

Fudou moved the lantern a little further away so Shimerigawa didn't see the way Kazemaru's face twisted.

"Well…" Kazemaru started, only to be cut off by Shimerigawa practically jumping on him, arms wrapped around his middle.

"Please! I promise I'll keep quiet, I know as a third year you need lots of sleep so you can get good grades for scholarships since you can't afford tuition fees!"

Even in the darkness, Fudou could see Kazemaru's eyebrow twitch. He wondered what expression he was making.

"... If you promise to stop saying stuff like that for the rest of the year, I'll allow it."

If not for the two of them immediately shushing him, Shimerigawa probably would have cheered.

"Go grab your phone and stuff I guess, you never know if your dad will call you because of the blackout " Kazemaru ordered, and the goalie scrambled back into his room. Fudou snorted.

"Wasn't he just crying about how he might fall and kill himself? You're being too nice." He said. Kazemaru sighed.

"It's better than having to deal with him whining about it in the morning." Fair enough.

Shimerigawa came back a second later, phone and charger in hand and immediately taking off down the hallway, his door slamming shut behind him.

"... That's your problem now." Fudou said, almost pitying.

Kazemaru just shook his head and started walking.

A few seconds later, he spoke up.

"So, what's the full reason you didn't go home?" He asked, watching Shimerigawa stop at each door to read the name plate, not knowing which one was Kazemaru's. Fudou clicked his tongue.

"You're not gonna drop it are you?" He asked, and Kazemaru responded with a tilt of his head and an almost playful smile. "... I didn't want to bother my mom."

"I didn't take you for the mama's boy type."

Fudou threw his hand up again.

"This is why I didn't wanna tell you… I just didn't want her to worry about Christmas presents or dinner or anything. Money is tight enough as it is, and it's not like I need that stuff. We're better off saving it for emergencies."

Kazemaru stared at him, face blank in the candlelight as his eyes flicked about Fudou's face. The other boy groaned.

"If you're just gonna stare-"

"You should stay with us tonight." Kazemaru interrupted, causing Fudou to choke.

"Excuse me?"

"With me and Shimerigawa. If I'm going to be stuck with one bother, I might as well have another around to even it out."

"Ha _ -ha _ ." Fudou sighed.

"I'm serious. If you're not going home, at least hang out with us tonight."

"I'd rather go back to sleep."

"You can do that too. I can't guarantee you won't wake up with marker all over your face though."

"You're not making a great case for yourself here."

Kazemaru laughed for real now, short and quiet, but still a laugh. Fudou bit his cheek, feeling the corners of his lips quicking up slightly.

“Only if we get to raid the kitchen for snacks.” He said finally. “Jimon keeps those marshmallows with the chocolate filling in the cupboard above the fridge. Think we can roast them over a candle without starting a fire?”

“Probably. At worst we blame Shimerigawa.” Kazemaru answered, and Fudou grinned. “Still, roasting marshmallows in the middle of winter during a blackout? That’s quite a cozy setting.”

“Not as cozy as Sakuma and Genda were getting back there.”

“ _ We didn’t see anything. _ ”

It was Fudou’s turn to laugh, loudly and not as considerate of the fact that other people might be sleeping.

“Alright then. Let’s go make as much noise as possible in the kitchen.”

He may have come to Teikoku to make things easier for his mother, but at least he came out of it with some worthwhile memories.

**Author's Note:**

> I've had this headcanon recently that Fudou is actually a Good Son. Like, even though he gets into fights and acts up, he doesn't do anything that would really bother his mom, monetarily or otherwise, because he knows they're struggling and she's doing her best. He may have been kinda mean in the original(and even in Ares, where this is set) but I saw that more as him taking his mother's words to heart and trying to live up to them, even if his definition of "strong" was a little warped.
> 
> My initial idea was actually pretty close to this one and set in OG, until I realized "wait a second, this isn't Christmas-y at all" and had to redo it entirely because I'd already gotten quite a bit a ways into the original draft... Shimerigawa also wasn't originally planned, he just kinda ended up there and I decided I could write him in. He has a bad rep, yeah, but I wanted to write him as the stupid kid he is, the kind that doesn't know any better about what should or shouldn't be said.
> 
> Either way, belated Merry Christmas to everyone!


End file.
